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FEDERATION OF MEDICAL AND ALLIED SOCIETIES.
1233
violent, and in some cases is independent of micturition, but in most cases is aggravated by Pollakiuria is the next most frequent symptom, but in none of the cases was it very marked. A slight urethral discharge was noted in three cases, and in several a discharge was produced by prostatic massage. Less frequent symptoms are hmmaturia, a feeling of a foreign body in the rectum, painful defaecation, painful coitus, and more As a rule the urine is someor less residual urine. what cloudy, and contains pus, muco-pus, epithelial cells, and sometimes red blood corpuscles. There is nothing pathognomonic either in the symptoms or rectal findings, so that the diagnosis must be made by exclusion, the history, the presence or absence of other symptoms of syphilis, including the Wassermann reaction, and the results of specific treatment. The prognosis is good, as in all the authentic cases improvement, and in most complete recovery, occurred under specific treatment. the act.
FEDERATION OF MEDICAL AND ALLIED SOCIETIES.
A MEETING of the Executive Council of the Federation was held on Thursday, May 27th, at 11, Chandos-street, Cavendish-square, when the report of the General Purposes Committee in regard to a submission from the Medico-Psychological Association of Great Britain and Ireland was considered, and it was resolved that a letter be sent to the Lord Chancellor, the Minister of Health, and the medical Members of the House of Commons urging the need of immediate legislation for the efficient treatment of mental disorders in their early stages. It was also reported that, in view of the request of certain nursing and allied organisations, a conference had been held, when the bodies chiefly concerned had agreed to the following resolution :"That there should be on the Consultative Council of Medical and Allied Services of the Ministry of Health a qualified nurse, who should also be a qualified midwife, and who at the same time should represent the masseuses and
sanitary inspectors." The Executive Council resolved to support this resolution by forwarding a letter on the matter to the Minister of Health and the medical Members of Parliament. A discussion of the Interim Report of the Consultative Council of Medical and Allied Services of the Health Ministry followed, the value of which was enhanced by the good attendance present and the fact that Lord Dawson, who is a member of the Council, answered very fully many questions which arose during the discussion.’ It was considered that a public and independent inquiry into the working of the National Insurance Medical Benefit and a census of the hospital beds in the country were necessary preliminaries to many of the reforms advocated. The following organisations, which had applied for corporate membership of the federation, were elected :-London and Counties. Medical Protection Society, National Union of Trained Nurses, School Dentists’ Society, Women Sanitary Inspectors and Health Visitors’ Association. The names of 42 medical men and women were submitted as applicants for associate membership and were declared duly elected. The Medical Committee of the House of Commons has nominated Captain W. E. Elliot, M.P., its secretary, as a watching representative on the Executive Council of the Federation, and Captain Elliot was elected a member of the Council.
by
THE TREATMENT OF LEPROSY.
AN account was given in THE LANCET of May 1st of the general recommendations of the Calcutta Leprosy Conference, since which the papers on the treatment of the disease read before the conference have been published in India (Indian .Medical Gazette, April), which furnish important confirmation regarding the value of Sir Leonard Rogers’s method of injecting soluble preparations of the unsaturated fatty acids of chaulmoogra and other oils, together with some further progress of his researches.
During the past year reports have been received of the trial, organised by the Mission to Lepers, of both sodium gynocardate intravenously and sodium morrhuate subcutaneously and intravenously from 13 leper asylums, an analysis of which was read by Dr. E. Muir, who had previously recorded favourable results from this line of treatment. Although many of the cases were advanced ones and the treatment was not long enough (in some cases not exceeding two months) to afford the best results, yet in 300 cases improvement was noted in 72 per cent. and much improvement in 32 per cent., including several cases in which the lesions entirely disappeared. The results were practically the same with both drugs, although most of the observers thought the gynocardate was more effective in anaesthetic cases, but more troublesome to carry out Dr. Muir on account of its irritant effect on the veins. concludes : " The result of this widely carried out experiment can leave but little doubt that a distinct advance has been made in the treatment of leprosy." An interesting report by Dr. Ernest Neve of his trial of the drugs in Cashmir is also recorded, as well as a suggestive paper by Dr. Muir on the after-treatment of the disease. A paper by Dr. M. Cathew, of Siam, reporting the further progress of his trial of sodium gynocardate A was also read, and is of interest owing to the longer duration of his trial, which he summarised as follows : In 4 the lesions have completely disappeared for from 6 to 18 months; in 8 there is very marked improvement, although in 2 of them there has been some retrogression ; in 1 general improvement, in 1 slight improvement, and in none no improvement. Four other cases were lost sight of, 2 of whom had very greatly improved. Sir Leonard Rogers also summarises his results up to date in 71 cases as showing 1 not improved, 12 slightly improved, 32 greatly improved, and 26 lesions disappeared, and mentions 4 of his earlier cases who have now remained free from all visible signs of the disease for over two and a half years. Six of his later series have remained free for over a year, but he records 5 relapses due to early cessation of the treatment, and states that it is too early to speak of permanent cures in this series. He goes on to point out that the success of sodium morrhuate in leprosy establishes the important principle that other unsaturated fatty acids than the peculiar series found in chaulmoogra oil are of value in the treatment of leprosy, which has led him to make further preparations from oils with a high iodine value, indicating a large proportion of these substances. One of these made on this theory from soya bean oil has proved to be practically unirritating on injection into patients, while a short trial indicates that it is considerably more active in leprosy than previous preparations, thus holding out hope of still further advances in the near future, when an experienced whole-time investigator will take up the research in the Calcutta School of Tropical Medicine. A paper in the same issue of the Indian Medical Gazette is worth attention. It is on the use of sodium morrhuate in advanced pulmonary tuberculosis. The subjects, who had tubercle bacilli in the sputum, were 28 sepoys at Quetta; at the date of the records 8 (in addition to 4 early cases) had been discharged cured by a medical board and 6 more were fit for discharge (and were passed by the board a little later), 4 were improving, 4 were worse, 3 were
violent, and in some cases is independent of micturition, but in most cases is aggravated by Pollakiuria is the next most frequent symptom, but in none of the cases was it very marked. A slight urethral discharge was noted in three cases, and in several a discharge was produced by prostatic massage. Less frequent symptoms are hmmaturia, a feeling of a foreign body in the rectum, painful defaecation, painful coitus, and more As a rule the urine is someor less residual urine. what cloudy, and contains pus, muco-pus, epithelial cells, and sometimes red blood corpuscles. There is nothing pathognomonic either in the symptoms or rectal findings, so that the diagnosis must be made by exclusion, the history, the presence or absence of other symptoms of syphilis, including the Wassermann reaction, and the results of specific treatment. The prognosis is good, as in all the authentic cases improvement, and in most complete recovery, occurred under specific treatment. the act.
FEDERATION OF MEDICAL AND ALLIED SOCIETIES.
A MEETING of the Executive Council of the Federation was held on Thursday, May 27th, at 11, Chandos-street, Cavendish-square, when the report of the General Purposes Committee in regard to a submission from the Medico-Psychological Association of Great Britain and Ireland was considered, and it was resolved that a letter be sent to the Lord Chancellor, the Minister of Health, and the medical Members of the House of Commons urging the need of immediate legislation for the efficient treatment of mental disorders in their early stages. It was also reported that, in view of the request of certain nursing and allied organisations, a conference had been held, when the bodies chiefly concerned had agreed to the following resolution :"That there should be on the Consultative Council of Medical and Allied Services of the Ministry of Health a qualified nurse, who should also be a qualified midwife, and who at the same time should represent the masseuses and
sanitary inspectors." The Executive Council resolved to support this resolution by forwarding a letter on the matter to the Minister of Health and the medical Members of Parliament. A discussion of the Interim Report of the Consultative Council of Medical and Allied Services of the Health Ministry followed, the value of which was enhanced by the good attendance present and the fact that Lord Dawson, who is a member of the Council, answered very fully many questions which arose during the discussion.’ It was considered that a public and independent inquiry into the working of the National Insurance Medical Benefit and a census of the hospital beds in the country were necessary preliminaries to many of the reforms advocated. The following organisations, which had applied for corporate membership of the federation, were elected :-London and Counties. Medical Protection Society, National Union of Trained Nurses, School Dentists’ Society, Women Sanitary Inspectors and Health Visitors’ Association. The names of 42 medical men and women were submitted as applicants for associate membership and were declared duly elected. The Medical Committee of the House of Commons has nominated Captain W. E. Elliot, M.P., its secretary, as a watching representative on the Executive Council of the Federation, and Captain Elliot was elected a member of the Council.
by
THE TREATMENT OF LEPROSY.
AN account was given in THE LANCET of May 1st of the general recommendations of the Calcutta Leprosy Conference, since which the papers on the treatment of the disease read before the conference have been published in India (Indian .Medical Gazette, April), which furnish important confirmation regarding the value of Sir Leonard Rogers’s method of injecting soluble preparations of the unsaturated fatty acids of chaulmoogra and other oils, together with some further progress of his researches.
During the past year reports have been received of the trial, organised by the Mission to Lepers, of both sodium gynocardate intravenously and sodium morrhuate subcutaneously and intravenously from 13 leper asylums, an analysis of which was read by Dr. E. Muir, who had previously recorded favourable results from this line of treatment. Although many of the cases were advanced ones and the treatment was not long enough (in some cases not exceeding two months) to afford the best results, yet in 300 cases improvement was noted in 72 per cent. and much improvement in 32 per cent., including several cases in which the lesions entirely disappeared. The results were practically the same with both drugs, although most of the observers thought the gynocardate was more effective in anaesthetic cases, but more troublesome to carry out Dr. Muir on account of its irritant effect on the veins. concludes : " The result of this widely carried out experiment can leave but little doubt that a distinct advance has been made in the treatment of leprosy." An interesting report by Dr. Ernest Neve of his trial of the drugs in Cashmir is also recorded, as well as a suggestive paper by Dr. Muir on the after-treatment of the disease. A paper by Dr. M. Cathew, of Siam, reporting the further progress of his trial of sodium gynocardate A was also read, and is of interest owing to the longer duration of his trial, which he summarised as follows : In 4 the lesions have completely disappeared for from 6 to 18 months; in 8 there is very marked improvement, although in 2 of them there has been some retrogression ; in 1 general improvement, in 1 slight improvement, and in none no improvement. Four other cases were lost sight of, 2 of whom had very greatly improved. Sir Leonard Rogers also summarises his results up to date in 71 cases as showing 1 not improved, 12 slightly improved, 32 greatly improved, and 26 lesions disappeared, and mentions 4 of his earlier cases who have now remained free from all visible signs of the disease for over two and a half years. Six of his later series have remained free for over a year, but he records 5 relapses due to early cessation of the treatment, and states that it is too early to speak of permanent cures in this series. He goes on to point out that the success of sodium morrhuate in leprosy establishes the important principle that other unsaturated fatty acids than the peculiar series found in chaulmoogra oil are of value in the treatment of leprosy, which has led him to make further preparations from oils with a high iodine value, indicating a large proportion of these substances. One of these made on this theory from soya bean oil has proved to be practically unirritating on injection into patients, while a short trial indicates that it is considerably more active in leprosy than previous preparations, thus holding out hope of still further advances in the near future, when an experienced whole-time investigator will take up the research in the Calcutta School of Tropical Medicine. A paper in the same issue of the Indian Medical Gazette is worth attention. It is on the use of sodium morrhuate in advanced pulmonary tuberculosis. The subjects, who had tubercle bacilli in the sputum, were 28 sepoys at Quetta; at the date of the records 8 (in addition to 4 early cases) had been discharged cured by a medical board and 6 more were fit for discharge (and were passed by the board a little later), 4 were improving, 4 were worse, 3 were